Bishops take to the streets to collect prayers for Lent

Church of England bishops are out and about in their local town centres today collecting prayers from shoppers and passers-by to mark the start of Lent.

For the next 40 days, people are being invited to share their hopes and concerns anonymously with God via a web-based prayer service, www.sayoneforme.org.

The bishops will be telling people about the service as they collect prayers on specially designed cards. The prayers will be offered at church services later in the day.

The Bishop of Dudley, the Rt Rev David Walker, said: “Lent is a time to turn to God to tell Him about your hopes, needs and concerns - and everyone posting a prayer at sayoneforme.org will know that others are praying their prayers with them and on their behalf.”

The Bishop of Leicester, the Rt Rev Tim Stevens, will be collecting prayers outside the Houses of Parliament, while the Archbishop of York, Dr John Sentamu, will be collecting prayers in York city centre and from patients at York Hospital.

Other bishops collecting prayers include the Bishop of Whitby, the Bishop of Hull, the Bishop of Manchester and the Bishop of Bolton.

Prayers posted online will be offered to God by various parish churches, prayer groups, and three religious communities - St Mary’s Abbey, West Malling; St Peter’s Convent, Woking; The Sisters of Bethany, Southsea.

They will also be prayed at the retreat centre Launde Abbey, Leicester, and placed on the altar at a number of cathedrals and at Westminster Abbey during church services.

Nearly 1,000 prayers were posted to the Say One for Me website last year.

Dr Tania ap Sion, Director of the St Mary's Centre, North Wales, said the prayers had clearly brought hope to a number of people.

"Sometimes the same person visited the website more than once - on the first occasion to ask for prayer and on the second occasion to give thanks for an answer to prayer.”


On the web: www.sayoneforme.org